Do you think that what has no price... Has no value? It's a subject that raises questions in every field. The world of Customer Success Management is no exception to the rule: so, if the support ofa CSM (Customer Success Manager) has value for an end customer... Should it be invoiced? And how do you market this B2B SaaS service?
Our Customerz teams recently had two opportunities to discuss the billing of CS support in B2B SaaS (or "billable CS"). The first time, at our Paris CS Talks event with Maxime Pommereau (Salesforce), in front of a hundred guests. The second time, during a podcast recording with Damien Duval (Nomadia) and Céline Bocchi (ex-Head of CS at CoachHub and Cornerstone, and now a member of our collective).
In this article, we take a look at their different perspectives on the subject. On the program:
- Billing for CS support: what does this mean in B2B SaaS?
- B2B SaaS: why charge for CS support?
- How to bill for CS support? 5 key steps
I- Billing for CS support: what does it mean in B2B SaaS?
A new paradigm in the B2B SaaS market
B2B SaaS is a fast-growing sector: all companies use "software as a service". In 2015, companies used 8 on average... Whereas in 2022, organizations used 130 SaaS applications (Source: Better Cloud, 2023).
Companies are well aware of the benefits of SaaS software. However, we are facing a new paradigm: on the one hand, digital transformation has supported the emergence of SaaS products... On the other hand, however, users still need support for the onboarding phase, getting to grips with the software and follow-up. This "service" dimension is inseparable from the "product".
But then, if a SaaS product has to be paid for... why shouldn't the support service provided by a CSM be paid for too?
Customer Success billing: a real (r)evolution
For many years, in the SaaS ecosystem, the support service was an integral part of the product. Customer Success teams provided comprehensive support, which was not billed back to the customer.
Let's take a simple example: B2B accounting software that costs €100 per month. As a general rule, this price tends to include access to the tool and additional services, such as the availability of a CSM to help the customer at every stage of using the solution. CS support was therefore not invoiced, since it was implicitly included in the subscription price.
But what does this mean for the added value of a CSM? If the service provided is not billed, what value do we associate with the advice and expertise of a Customer Success Manager?
At the dawn of a paradigm shift (crisis, race for growth and retention, etc.), these questions invite us to take a fresh look at the value and pricing of CS support. Charging for such support means associating a monetary value with a high value-added service. But why change if "that's the way it's always been done"?
II- B2B SaaS: why charge for CS support?
90% of SaaS companies do not charge (or charge only in theory) for support for their Customer Success Managers (source: Customerz survey, 2024). Fear often paralyzes: what would customers say about such a change? And isn't it too restrictive a strategy to implement? Can we deliver enough value to justify this pricing?
At Customerz, we understand these fears. Yet we work with SaaS companies on a daily basis, helping them to structure and organize their CS strategy. Invoicing is becoming more and more democratic, and end-users are now ready to pay for guidance!
Among the benefits of CS billing:
- An engine for profitability: invoiced support is an engine for your profitability... and your customer's too! Especially at a time when 53% of enterprise SaaS licenses are not used regularly (Productiv report, 2023). With paid support, end-customers are more motivated to get to grips with the tool efficiently and achieve their results. On your side, invoicing enables a better economic equation, for a better ROI.
- Boosted customer satisfaction: by paying for personalized support, customers invest in their own success. In turn, your CSM team is in direct contact with users' needs, issues and expectations. This makes it easier for them to identify areas for improvement, increase satisfaction and reduce attrition.
- Rewarding the work of CSMs: the CS billable is a gratifying form of recognition for the Customer Success Managers who work in your company (or for your company, on a freelance basis, via a collective such as Customerz). Their expertise becomes associated with a "value" that has a price: it's a motivating lever, inviting them to deliver ever higher quality. A real lever for boosting the performance of your Customer Success team!
So, invoicing the CSM part is a win-win-win approach. Win for the SaaS solution, win for the customer and win for the end-user. But it's not enough to choose a price at random, to invoice for customer support... You also need to know how to do it right, and how to communicate it to the customer.
III- How to bill for CS support? 5 key steps
- Take stock of the existing situation
Invoicing for the sake of invoicing is pointless. Nor does rushing into it. Before embarking on such an approach, you need to think strategically. Take the time to ask yourself the following questions:
- What is the current pricing?
- What are customers' needs?
- How complex is your solution?
- What is the customer's level of maturity?
- What value can the CS team generate for your customer?
This last question is important, because it reveals key success (or non-success) factors: if the team isn't mature, if there are too many customers to keep track of, if customer success isn't measured... Billing Customer Success Management will generate frustration on both sides, for you and your customers. On the other hand, if the existing situation reveals a good structure and organization... then billable CS seems viable, relevant and appropriate. You'll be able to deliver best-practice workshops based on customer data from the same sector, and bill for personalized recommendations based on usage... But we'll talk about that later.
Next, list all the additional functions and services offered to customers. This inventory will reveal the first strategic directions to be taken, in response to users' needs.
Right from this initial stage, we advise you to involve your sales teams in your discussions. In pre-sales contact with CSMs, sales people can help you identify customers' main needs, pain points and objections, before the contract is signed.
- Think "made-to-measure
There are dozens of CS billing methods. The idea is not to copy that of another B2B company... but to adopt a method tailored to your customers. And if your customer portfolio is made up of different types of organizations (small, medium and large accounts), then different pricing structures can be devised.
Indeed, the various professionals who have spoken on this subject recently (Maxime Pommereau from Salesforce, Damien Duval from Nomadia and Céline Bocchi) agree with our vision at Customerz : the complexity of a product and the maturity of a customer influence the CS billing strategy.
What this means:
- The more complex your product and the less mature your customer, the easier it will be to invoice for customized support: to help the customer become more mature, to get to grips with the tool, to monitor performance, etc.
- The simpler your product and the more mature your customer, the less likely they are to need the services of a CSM: the customized strategy to be implemented can be based on self-service, via a low-touch strategy (creation of a Customer Academy, provision of video tutorials, etc.).
- Test, iterate, formalize
At this stage in the process of structuring your "Billable CS" strategy, you've got a number of different billing options in mind. If you haven't already, here are a few examples to inspire you:
Then comes the test phase. This period, which lasts several months, is used to verify the adoption of the new pricing structure. Of course, it's important to remain flexible (depending on customer loyalty, average basket size, company size, etc.). Take advantage of the opportunity to test a new organization: for example, have you considered tandem mode?
Then, once Customer Success has been accepted as a profit center (without being perceived as a cost center), it's time to make it official. Charging for CS support is a lasting change, not an event-driven one. Users of your SaaS solution need to be made aware of these changes, and the renewal of the new price must be explicit and contractual. Never present your customers with a fait accompli!
- Monitor performance and measure results
Billing for CS support is a major strategic change. And like any strategy deployment, tracking results is essential. At Customerz, when we intervene within a B2B company, we set up a roadmap to facilitate this follow-up. This roadmap covers all the key stages for a CSM, from customer onboarding to the "run" phase.
For example, if the company's objective is to improve the upsell of its SaaS solution, this challenge needs to be translated into measurable terms. We speak of "ROO", to measure return on objective. To measure this ROO, the main KPIs to track in the roadmap may be the free-to-pay conversion rate or net retention rate (NRR).
As soon as the CS billable is introduced, other performance indicators are added, such as :
- Product adoption rate
- Customer Lifetime Value
- Time To Value
Or the rate of participation, connection and downloading (of resources put in place): webinars, office hours, workshops, practical guides, tutorials... This visibility of the customer's actions helps to optimize the support provided to ensure customer success, but also to prevent certain objections. For example, if a customer complains that he has not made the most of his support, all the services offered upstream and the availability of the CSM can be justified.
Depending on results and performance, the CSM may suggest areas for improvement in terms of support. The goal? Aim for 5 stars... and customer success!
- Supporting change management
Communication is the foundation of adoption. To ensure the success of your Customer Success Management invoicing project, all stakeholders need to understand the benefits of this change. So it's time for communication. Internally AND externally!
First of all, if management or the Heads of CS take such a decision, CSM teams need to be involved in the process (as early as possible). The aim is to explain to them why their support is being paid for by users, what the terms and conditions are, and what this means for them. A maximum of reassurance is necessary: explain that the CSM's place in your structure does not change, nor does its value. On the contrary: with a "billable CS" approach, this value even increases!
Finally, as previously stated, external communication (with customers) must be carried out in stages. Test phase, iteration, formalization... Throughout this process, always place transparency, benevolence and the presentation of the benefits of such a change for the customer, at the heart of your discourse.
So, are you ready to take action?
💡Discover our video podcast: "Can you invoice your CS service?"
